Go behind the scenes of I Am Both: A Vietnamese Refugee Story by Kerisa Greene. I Am Both is a inspired by Kerisa’s family’s journey on the last flight out of Saigon and is a compelling exploration of identity, immigration, and family.
Read on for an interview with Kerisa Greene, Rachel Diebel, Editor at Feiwel & Friends, and Naomi Silverio, Associate Designer at Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group to learn more about how this book was made, preview interior art, and to discover one of the most inventive uses of rice paper we’ve seen in a picture book!
Rachel Diebel: Hello to our dream team, Kerisa and Naomi! My first question is for Kerisa – Kerisa, one of the things that I love so much about your gorgeous art is the textures you bring to the images and the way that adds an extra dimension to the art. Can you talk about how you achieved that textured feelings, and what inspired you to use that method?
Kerisa Greene: Thanks, Rachel! I’m so happy you love the textures! I really wanted to incorporate Vietnamese-related elements into the artwork for this book. So I scoured my local Vietnamese market and bought a few fun items like rice paper (usually used for making spring rolls), bamboo leaves (used for wrapping and cooking food like bánh chưng), a nón lá (a traditional Vietnamese hat made of palm leaves), and rice noodles. I then painted and stamped the items on mixed media paper, and scanned them into the computer, creating various digital brushes that I used in the illustrations. I also hand-carved the two patterns that are seen throughout the book, one on a wood block and the other on a rubber block.
Naomi, I know you mentioned that working on this book inspired you to try phở for the first time. What did you think of it? And did it feel reminiscent of the dining scenes in the book?
Naomi Silverio: Hi everyone! Kerisa, I absolutely loved the textures you used throughout the book so much and great question! Personally, I’m a picky eater but I always like to try anything at least once especially when it looks as good as it does in your illustrations. My art director Mina and I live pretty close to each other and while we were discussing the art she mentioned one of her favorite spots to get phở. Totally sold, I went in with my tummy “rumbling” and “grumbling” and I left with a new appreciation for that warm, cozy feeling of a delicious meal while surrounded by friends. Like in the book, the phở helped bring us closer together and created a special memory that will always remind me of this book. Kerisa’s story sold Vietnamese food to me so well that I even ended up trying bánh mì! (It was delicious!) Rachel, have you eaten Vietnamese food before? If you’ve already had some of the tasty food, is there anything else while working on or within this story that you connected with personally?
Rachel: OMG, Naomi, I’m so glad you tried some Vietnamese food! It’s so delicious! I grew up in the Pacific Northwest, where there’s a phở place basically every block, so I adore it, and so reading this book really reminded me of my teenage and college years, going to grab phở. Ugh, now I’m hungry…
Kerisa and Naomi – one of the other things that I love so much about the design of this book that makes it feel special and unique is the incorporation of Kerisa’s hand lettering that mimics the words themselves. You can see the rumbling and grumbling in the words as you wrote them! Kerisa, how did you decide that was something you wanted to include? And Naomi, how is working with hand lettered text like this different than working with typeset text?
Kerisa: Honestly it was a spur-of-the-moment decision to try it out on the updated sketches that I had sent over. If you looked back through my early versions of the dummy the now hand lettered words were just in bold. I knew I wanted those words to stand out and be different from the rest of the text, I just wasn’t sure how. I thought Naomi was going to work her magic and decide for me but then at one of our meetings, she mentioned that she loved the hand lettered elements so I just went with it! After that, I just had fun playing with the words adding fun elements to them to try to illustrate the sounds.
Naomi: The hand lettered words were so much fun to work with! I see those elements as another piece of art and always encourage illustrators to include some if they feel comfortable doing so. There is a bit of a balance to find between having the word look like the feeling/sound we were trying to convey while also making sure that the word was legible. But as Rachel mentioned, you can really feel the “rumble” and “grumble” of the main characters’ hungry tummy and hear the “clink clank” of the passing bikes. To me, that feels like a job well done and adds a fun, unique element to this special book.
Kerisa, you’ve dedicated this book to your mom and thanked her for allowing you to share her story. What did she and your other family members think of how this book turned out? Is there a spread they loved the most?
Kerisa: I’ll let my mom say in her own words how she feels about the book: “I am so excited to see a children’s book depicting me and my family’s story. It’s a story shared by so many Vietnamese people and it’s nice to see it expressed from the viewpoint of a child that lived through it. I think the book beautifully captures the essence of coming to America and creating a home in a new, foreign land, using vivid illustrations and heartfelt storytelling. Through its pages, I relive the courage and resilience of my parents and siblings as we created our new life in the U.S. The book not only honors our family’s history but also serves as a beacon of hope for younger generations, illustrating the power of determination and the strength of familial bonds in the face of adversity. It’s a poignant reminder of our shared humanity and the triumph of the human spirit over adversity, making it a cherished addition to our family’s narrative.”
As for favorite spreads there were a few that multiple family members pointed out and excitedly started talking about. I think for me one of the beautiful things about this book has been seeing how it has prompted family members to share what they remember and relive old memories. One scene that stood out is when all the kids piled on the moped together, that immediately made all the siblings laugh and talk about how they remember squeezing on and holding on tight during rides.
Another favorite seemed to be the spread where the family boarded the plane. Everyone remembers different things from that moment. Some siblings remember trying to carry all of their belongings, even things like the family television! While others recall knowing that they were going somewhere but not realizing that boarding the plane would be their last time in Vietnam.
The other spread that everyone loves is the final dinner scene where the family is gathered around the table eating phở. It reminds them of how our family spends time together, there’s always food involved and things are a bit chaotic when everyone squeezes into the kitchen.
Rachel, you worked on every aspect of this book. What has been your favorite part of working on I AM BOTH?
Rachel: Honestly, I think it’s watching the suggestions Naomi and I make about both the text and art come to life when you execute them, Kerisa! It’s always incredible when I make a minor suggestion for a change and an author executes it perfectly in a way that I didn’t imagine – it’s like magic every time.
My final question for you both: What did you learn from working on this first book that you took with you to the creation of Kerisa’s next book, Legendary Cakes?
Naomi: Ohhhh love this question! The immediate thing I remember is wanting Kerisa to continue to do her thing. The textures, the hand lettering, and even little details from her personal experiences (like the little rice cooker we see on the counter in Legendary Cakes) are all things we felt were part of Kerisa’s story telling style and helped her book feel more personal. I also find it easy to work on a book 2 with the same team because we all already know what the process looks like and seem to find more time to be a little more creative/experimental. One of my favorite little details that Kerisa brought to Legendary Cakes are the photos on the walls we see on pages 6, 9, and 10 which call back to I Am Both. Like if you know, you know, but no big deal if you don’t catch it on the first read though. What about you Kerisa?
Kerisa: Such a great question and so hard to answer! I feel like I’ve learned so much throughout this process and I’m so grateful for everyone’s feedback and suggestions. It has been such a joy collaborating with this amazing team and I’m in awe over how much the story and art improves by the end. I felt so supported and encouraged throughout all of the edits and revisions so I think this time around I felt more confident. For Legendary Cakes Naomi encouraged me to explore color more and after that nudge I really went for it in a way I hadn’t in my work before and I’m so happy with how it turned out. Creating a book truly is a team effort and I’m so thankful for both you, Rachel, and Naomi, and the rest of the team. Thank you for making this entire journey so incredibly fun, it’s been a dream come true!
ABOUT THE BOOK
I Am Both: A Vietnamese Refugee Story
by Kerisa Greene
Published by Feiwel & Friends | Ages 4-8
“Greene methodically blends warm hues to create subtle shadows and textures that add to the gentle tone and emotional arc of the narrative . . . A gentle tale outlining the loss and growth of a refugee.” —Kirkus Reviews
A picture book inspired by the author’s family’s journey on the last flight out of Saigon, I Am Both is a compelling exploration of identity, immigration, and family.
We zip through the city listening to the music of the street.
I hear the swish swoosh of the baskets and the clink clank of the passing bikes.
For Hương, life in Saigon, Vietnam is mostly normal—at least, as normal as it can be while a war is going on. But when her family decides to take the last flight out of the country to build a new life in America, Hương worries about missing her home. Through new friends and old traditions, Hương learns that no matter where we go, the smell of home and the taste of love can be found anywhere, as long as we have our family.
In this timely and hopeful story of immigration, author/illustrator Kerisa Greene captures the vibrancy of life in both Vietnam and America with wonderfully textured illustrations and descriptions of the sights and sounds of each country. Fun and educational extras include the true story behind Hương’s journey and a glossary of Vietnamese terms.
